Whale autopsy in Ocean View

It was, however, on Tuesday as crowds gathered in Norfolk’s Ocean View neighborhood to watch researchers cut open and bury parts of a 42-foot fin whale. For the few standing on a nearby wooden deck — an ideal viewing platform — the pungent smell of burning tobacco briefly overpowered the rotting corpse’s stench.

Part sideshow, part construction project and all science experiment, Tuesday’s necropsy offered the public a rare glimpse of a mammal seldom observed — even during whale-watching tours.

“It’s not everyday that you see this,” said Joan Barns, spokeswoman for the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center in Virginia Beach.

Researchers incorrectly identified the corpse as a sei whale when it washed ashore Sunday at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. They determined it was a juvenile fin whale — also called finback whales — after pulling it from the surf on Tuesday.

The next step is to figure out what killed the beast, which is an endangered species and protected by the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act.

“You hate that these things happen, but scientifically they’re incredibly important,” said Mark Swingle, the aquarium’s director of research and conservation.

There are indications the whale was struck by a ship. Researchers said it suffered an 18-inch gash and partial skull fracture. They also found what they believe is paint or rust in the wound.

The whale could have died before the alleged ship strike, Swingle said. Researchers will determine that by examining tissue — like a human, there would be bruising if the whale was alive when struck — around the wound.

On Tuesday, they used a backhoe and machetes to dissect the mammal. Off to the side, researcher Linda D’Eri used two hands to pick up a mass of tissue from the steel examination table.

“This is actually the whale penis,” she said before letting the organ fall with a thud on the beach near other discarded body parts.

Researchers planned to take the skull, portions of the penis, heart, kidney and other body parts back to science center’s laboratory for further analysis. Other parts of the whale, including most of its blubber and bones, were buried deep in the sand.

Unlike other countries, whale is typically not eaten in the U.S. Nor is it used to light lamps, a practice that led to widespread commercial whaling in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The city of Norfolk, which is in charge of the whale’s disposal, opted to bury it because pulling it back to sea would be more expensive and likely to attract sharks, Swingle said. He expects the carcass to decompose within a few months, leaving only the bones.